Slaanesh, the Dark Father

Říjen 20, 2012

Slaanesh, the Dark Father of Undergods

The druchii of Cynath Arhain see Slaanesh as the consort of Ereth Khial and father of all other cytharai. For them He is a god of pleasure and the most mighty of all elven gods including Asuryan himself. Andurial is seen as the avatar of Slaanesh and thus his position as the Witch Lord of the Viper Realm is unquestionable.

Caras believe that Four Gods of Chaos are simply the four strongest gods in existence and that Slaanesh is of elven origin, while the other three were born from primitive minds of lesser races. Born from seduction of Asuryan by Morai Heg, Slaanesh is also called the Dark Prince and is destined to overthrow His despotic bigoted father and thus set all Elves free from his prudish oppression, but He cannot do so until He first defeats the other three chaos gods.

No druchii of Cynath Arhain can worship any undergod without praising the Dark Father at the same time, for any specific excess dedicated to other cytharai feeds Slaanesh as well. Thus all caras are actually Slaaneshi worshippers, even as almost all of them give themselves primarily to one of lesser cytharai.

While relationships between the Dark Prince and His mother, wife and children are very complex and sometimes almost hostile, there is a strong bond among the cytharai born from their mutual hatred for cadai and three chaos gods. Off all His children the Dark Father favors most his daughter Atharti, the goddess of love, just as he openly despises his demented son Khaine, the god of murder.

Thus it is no surprise that the Temple of Atharti is the most powerful cult among the druchii of Cynath Arhain and that the worship of Khaine is one of the few offences punishable by death. It is also the main reason of eternal hatred between Andurial and Hag Queen Hellebron, who seeks to destroy the all caras for many centuries now.

These druchii also believe that all daemonettes were once elven mortals and that all forest spirits used to be slaaneshi daemons. While such ideas look absurd to many outsiders, caras seem to be sure in their beliefs. It is also noteworthy that most sorcerous aspects of this druchii society are seen as doings of other cytharai like the presence of daemons serving Atharti. In battle these druchii call upon various cytharai, but it is ultimately Slaanesh who is most praised on battlefield. This is because most caras warriors engage in battles willingly mainly in order to feel pleasures, which can only be experienced in war, outside of their wickedly peaceful realm.

It might seem that society composed of such extreme hedonists would dislike battle, yet opposite is the truth. Caras are among the most warlike Elves, cause despite their hatred for Khaine they too are cursed by the drawing of the Widowmaker and thus great bloodlust sings in their veins. Strange and peculiar Witch Lord Andurial strictly forbids any acts of violence among his people, and thus most of these druchii beg to join his armies in order to experience pleasure from causing pain.

To many outsiders Slaanesh thus might seem more like a god of pain and war, for His name is mainly restricted to battlefield just as we Asur also call upon Khaine only in times of war. To me He appears as a god of vengeance here in Cynath Arhain, for all his praising during battle is seen as avenging all hedonists from both past and future, whose desires were not fulfilled because of blind misguided enemies.

As it was foretold by the Queen Mother Morathi, the whole Viper Realm now exists only because of favor of Slaanesh. It is only through His blessing that the Witch Lord and Princess Adigha reign supreme in their realm, should He release the caras from the Velvet Pact, they shall be united no more, the authority of their rulers would no longer be unquestioned and the rebellions will be sure to come. Worse yet, all Viper Coasts and the whole Viper Underworld are infested with hordes of His Daemons just as Viper Woods are filled with herds of Slaangors. Without the Velvet Pact these masses shall fall upon their former elven masters in a heartbeat.

When I first saw how openly Slaanesh is praised in Cynath Arhain, I instantly wondered how these druchii…these caras… can be so blind to their inevitable doom from the hands of their unholy deity. Not only do they consort with daemons and slaangors in insane manner, wear pink and blue velvet dedicated to him all the time and make themselves more and more dependent on His will with every passing century, they also refuse to see their God as anything else than utterly loving and benevolent deity.

When I mentioned my shock to Adigha, she simply laughed and reminded me that caras have lived without experiencing His punishment or betrayal for so long, that such worries would be unfounded. Obviously Adigha and Andurial think…or at least hope…that blind faith of caras shall be enough to reshape nature of this otherwise selfish uncaring god. Yet I suspect she and her father have doubts about favor of their patron. I am also certain that there is one great secret that Adigha is keeping both from me and her people, yet what could that be even I don’t dare to guess…